Self tacking jibs?

Tomaret said:
Hanse may have inherited the isolated helm from Dehler. My Dehler 36 CWS has the helm aft of the central winch which means acrobatics are required to change driver. We've developed a one way system. The 36 has a vertically battened self taking jib replaced by a furling genacker off the wind. Control of the jib comes back to the helm, so it's great for single handed trips. It's also easier to see under the foresail than with a big genoa which is also helpful short handed.
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Don't think this is connected with Dehler as it had been a feature of all the 32-34' Hanses with wheel steering. They chose a much larger wheel and really too big for the cockpit - but does allow you to steer from out on the coamings if you wish. The latest small boat the 315 has twin wheels which solves some of those problems, but of course introduces others!
 
weustace said:
"Jib-booms and bobstays", as the recently revived Mrs Blackett would possibly say...

Very common on Broads cruisers, due to the inevitable short tacking—most of these didn't have a power unit of any sort, other than a quant pole. My grandfather had an embarrassing mishap as a young man single handing one of these: on approaching a swing bridge, upstream, the bridge was opened as he sailed up to it. This put him in wind shadow, and he drifted back; on reaching for the quant pole, he found it wouldn't touch the bottom. After trying twice more, he gave up and went the other way.

Sorry, that was a bit of a tangent...
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That wasn't a tangent - it was a quanting leap.
 
I have a Hanse 301 too. Wonderful sail, the self tacker, in my home waters: Zeeland, mainly the Oosterschelde. Sometimes short tacking for hours, when most of the other boats are using their engine. We use 25 l of diesel for a whole season, summer cruise included.
Downside: the sail always has to much twist, except when close hauled. Haven't tried a barber hauler, though. And it can't be reefed: that ruins the sheeting angle. And downwind it's useless beyond 150° and I take it away. So I use a normal roller reefing jib, about 110%, at sea. Better performance, more sail area in light winds, smaller area in a fresh breeze. Altogether a better and more versatile sail.
 
My Hanse 311 will carry its self tacker up to f8 ok with no reefs so it keeps its efficiency. Giving me tge advantage of a much wider wind range.I do have a genoa but as i sail Single handed i rarely find the need for it.current st is a laminate & powerful so is a bit much above bottom end of f8. My hyde dacron was less so & could be held for a higher wind scale . I do have downhauls permanently fitted to the clew for off wind & in light airs i carry a cruising chute if down wind which is far better thsn a Genoa any way.
My st sheet is lead back to the main cockpit winches rather than the cabin winches & i can use the aft cruising chute winches near the transom if i felt the need
The st points higher than a genoa & in winds above 10 ktsis every bit as fast as the genoa. I have to start reefing at about 18 kts in any sort of sea so the genoa up wind is not much help.
A hanse will not heave too like a conventional long keel yacht or like a lot of awb's . In fact it can be positively dangerous trying to heave too in high wind so there is no need to try locking the st off to windward although it is quite easy to do if one wanted to & i often do when down wind to stop the car sliding back & forth with a bang
One can sail with the st part reefed. It probably depends on what sheeting angle the sailmaker gave the sail when made. In 13 years i am on my 4th st & they all part furl ok although i very rarely do so.
 
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Our previous boat had a self tacking staysail, using a Hoyt boom. Once we deep sixed the 135% Genoa for a new 10O% high cut Yankee from Crusader Sails the boat became so much easier to handle with just First Mate and I aboard. It was no slower on passage either.

The replacement, another Island Packet, has a self tacking Jib-100%-also on a Hoyt boom. The new boat is the SP Cruiser, designed specificaly for a couple with occaisional guests and is fitted with a Lewmar 40 electric winch for setting and trimming the sails. The Main is in-mast furling. It is really easy to manage, she sails well with the wind abeam or behind but makes excessive leeway and heels badly with the wind too far ahead.

On both craft we have appreciated the benifits of the self tacking Staysail and Jib. If we sailed with a big strong crew it would be a matter of indifference-they would handle the sheets.

With a couple of pensioners with physical problems sailing, self tacking is a great help. As is the electric winch.

IMHO, of course.........................
 
I have a self tacking jib. I just shout "tacking" and the crew do the rest.

Seriously you can fit a track and self tacking gear to almost any yacht. The jib size will be restricted though, a definite backtrack on those big overlapping genoas.
 
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